Lover Undercover

chapter Eighteen


“Always,” she repeated, encouraged when her voice sounded less like it came from the far end of a long tunnel. She fought the dragging pull of sleep. Vague recollections of losing this battle a couple of times already, with the paramedics, a harried doctor, a nice nurse, danced through her mind. But this time she really wanted, no, needed to win. Because this time, it was Trevor.

As the fog cleared, she pulled his heart-stopping face into focus. He opened his mouth to respond, but Stacy’s anxious voice swept into the silence.

“Do you remember what happened? Benny drugged you and tossed you in the back of his car.”

She turned her head and found Stacy on her other side.

“Benny?” For a moment, her mind refused to connect the name with anything, and then, whoosh, it all came rushing back—the knock at her car window, surprise at finding him standing there, a chemical-laden cloth shoved in her face.

That cleared the fog like a gale force wind. She struggled to sit up, only to have two sets of hands hold her down. She turned to Trevor. “Stacy’s right. I got home, I wasn’t paying attention, and then—out of nowhere—he was there, by my car, and—and—”

“Shhh. I know. You’re safe. He’s in custody. Ian’s already got his confession.”

“Can you believe it?” Stacy interjected. “It was Benny, all along. He killed Alex and Carlton. Turns out Benny had a sister who worked as a stripper at a club in Boston. She got him a job bouncing there. On his night off, one of her regular customers got good and loaded, cornered her in the parking lot after her shift, and when she turned down his proposition, beat her to death.”

Stunned, she turned to Trevor. He nodded. “He never forgave himself for not being there to protect her.”

She looked at Stacy again, but directed her question to Trevor. “Blond with blue eyes?”

“Good guess. Benny moved to LA, landed the job at Deuces, and he’s been ‘protecting’ his sister ever since. At least in his mind. When we left the club together the other night, he realized limiting his efforts to the club wouldn’t cut it anymore. He had to be able to watch you 24-7 if he wanted to make sure nothing happened, so he decided to take you away. He rented a place outside Vegas, with some notion about you two living together, and eventually, working together at another club. He doesn’t have a clue he abducted you and not Stacy.”

“My God, the whole thing is just…” Sad. Crazy. Terrifying. “…awful. What’s going to happen to him?”

“He’s confessed to murdering two unarmed men, which means he’s looking at life in prison or worse. His attorney will probably offer an insanity defense. I’m no psychiatrist, but he’s got me convinced. Either way, Benny’s days protecting pretty blond strippers are over.”

“How did I get here? I mean, I know I came in an ambulance, but I’ve got a black hole from the time Benny knocked on my window until now.”

Trevor filled in the blanks, with frequent interruptions from Stacy. Kylie followed along as best she could. In the end, she found herself swallowing hard around a painful lump in her throat. Ian, Stacy, Trevor—she owed them so much, particularly Trevor. How could she have thought he would throw her life off course? He’d saved it, for God’s sake.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered, and clasped Trevor’s hand. “I should have owned up to this a long time ago—I love you.”

“I love you, too,” Stacy replied. “But don’t apologize, honey, none of this is your fault…”

Kylie watched Trevor’s eyes shift to Stacy and let hers follow suit. Under two sets of pointed stares, Stacy blinked. “Oh, my. You weren’t talking to me. Jeez, look at the time. I should, um…call Ian, and tell him you’re awake,” she mumbled as she hustled out of the room.

As soon as the door swooshed shut, Trevor turned to her. “You were saying?”

“I’m so sorry—”

“Not that part. The thing about loving me?”

“I do. I love you—”

He cut her off with a slow, tender, and completely mind-numbing kiss. When he finally raised his head, hers was spinning.

“I wanted to tell you, but I was too scared.”

“Technically, you did mention it,” he pointed out with a grin. Then his expression sobered. “Don’t be afraid.” He kissed her again, quick and thorough. “I love you, too. I love that you have dreams and goals, and I would never do anything to derail those.”

“I know. In my heart, I always knew. But I wouldn’t let myself believe it.” His lips closed in on hers again, but she looked into his eyes and kept on speaking. “Someone recently pointed out to me that I have a few trust issues.”

Those dark, knowing eyes stared back at her. His lips curved into a slow, lopsided smile. “Maybe I could help you work those out?”

“I don’t know. I might take a while.”

“I’ve got a while,” he assured her, and rubbed his lips over the sensitive hollow at the base of her throat. “Starting now?”

She closed her eyes and sighed. “Now sounds just right.”